It has been a while since I have just posted photographs of me in an outfit but this week I sat down in front of my fujifilm because this dress just begs to be shot.

This dreamy dress is by Lee Mathews (shop here). It was one of my purchases from my ‘Saving to Spend’ in August and it was an extra win because I got it with a 20% off code on The Iconic. I thought it would be the perfect spring/summer dress and it did not disappoint. As soon as it arrived I have been eyeing it off in different colours.

Highs

August was overall a pretty damn lovely month. It was my birthday so I took a few days off to head up the beach and my family ended up joining us up there. We got super lucky when shell hunting on the beach, I would say the most shell-luck I’ve had since the 90s at a beach called Shelleys’s so that is saying something. On my birthday we were sitting eating fish and chips on the beach at sunset & dolphins came in! Which I have never seen in the 27 years I have been going there so that was pretty damn magical. Two clothing items I had been eyeing off went on special but I will touch on that later. I got to work with Penfolds and try an expensive red wine, such a treat. Went to the movies to see Once Upon A Time In Hollywood and really enjoyed all 2 and half hours of it. Hit a financial goal of mine early*. Transferred a chunk of money into my super. Also started a couple new personal projects that don’t make me any money!

Lows (but not really)

Hardly any lows this month but Michael ordered bubble tea and forgot to ask for pearls - that was a low. I wonder if anyone actually buys bubble tea without the pearls? The main reason we get bubble tea is for the surprise of a pearl when it hits your tongue. *So a high was hitting a financial goal I had early. But I felt weird about it. I was pretty close and on track to hit it at the end of the year however I hit it early because of the amazing actions of other people in my life. So I am having trouble being proud of myself or celebrating hitting that goal because the last step wasn’t the result of my hard work. Probably silly but I feel a little guilty about it.

I am 27, I don’t have my shit together

I turned 27 this month and for some reason it has thrown me a little. I think it is because in my mind I am 22 and doing well for my age? But then I realise I am 27.. and then I open facebook and suddenly feel the urge to get married, have a bun (that isn’t sourdough) in the oven and have a house that I am renovating. I don’t know but it hit me all of a sudden. Am I behind? What am I doing? What have I been doing?! *insert anxiety attack here*I can talk myself back down from that ledge but it still creeps up more than I enjoy at the moment. It is a time where I really have to stay strong with my own values and try not let the noise cloud me. I could also delete 90% of the people on my Facebook.

Saving to spend - A month on..

Last month I touched on that I was going to stop buying things weekly out of my spending money, pool left over money and at the end of each month treat myself to the things I wanted to buy. So I did that, pooled around the $800 mark and a couple of things happened. Firstly, I saved a bunch of money because I waited and 2 pricier items went on sale (or had discount codes). Secondly, I was a lot more considered about the items I was buying because I had to wait to purchase them and really look at what % of the $800 it would eat up. Lastly, buying it all over a couple of days meant it felt like Christmas when it all arrived. Delayed gratification is sometimes the best. I will be doing the same in the next week or so with the money I saved to spend in August. PS. This is outside of my savings, I am not spending my savings.

New Personal Projects

This month was a little more chill on the client front which was amazing as I was able to focus on creating for the sake of creating. First came the Cut Out Catalogue. If you follow me on Instagram you would have noticed I shared some cut out collages of beauty products earlier this month. I have been playing with cut out collages for a while now starting with the fruits a couple of years ago and now I have a full on obsession doing it to beauty products. I think I have around 30 on file now so keep an eye out on my feed for more soon.

I also started a new instagram account for another obsession of mine - bees on flowers. It isn’t for anything more than sharing my photos and videos of bees on flowers and it is bringing me so much joy. It is called Self Pollination (@selfpollination) because Bees on Flowers was already taken.

Almost daily I get questions about the jewellery that I have on so I thought I would compile a list here instead. A guide to some of my favourite brands across different price points. As you can probably tell from the below, I like to wear gold and gold plated where I can. Not to fear if you wear silver as these brands will often cater to you also!

Highs

The biggest high that lasted the whole month was finding out that I will be an auntie to my first ever niece next year. 100% stoked about that and I am pretty sure that now all algorithms will think I am the one having a baby thanks to all of the searches I have been doing. After living at our new place nearly 9 months we finally found the perfect piece for behind our couch to store our books. That meant we could finally take them out of boxes and give them a good home. I finally picked up, read & finished Eggshell Skull by Bri Lee, such a compelling read. We had a lady bug join us for lunch one day which was the best visitor I could hope for. For the first time in 5 years I don’t have a tax bill and am actually getting money back! I started to enquire about treating myself to my dream dress (*see below for how that turned out) I went and spoke to someone about my finances and opened a new savings account to earn more interest. After getting over $1200 stolen out of my bank account I got it all back within just over a week.I bought tickets to see The National next year. I started booking in times to go for a walk in my work day. This may seem silly but I found it easier to leave the house when there is a dedicated hour for it.

(Hardly) Lows

I had a weird week for money luck this month. I had someone use my card to go on a $1200 shopping spree and had one of my online orders ‘lost’. Luckily they were both resolved but for a week there I was without a card and feeling a little anxious about it. I emailed one of my all time favourite designers this month to enquire about a dress I had seen on their instagram. After about 6 emails to try get any details about its release and price I found out that I had fallen in love with one of their most expensive dresses. It crushed me a little but I also know that for me, it wasn’t going to be worth it as I could also spend a couple of weeks in Europe for the same price.

New In: Designer bag

This month I made the choice to order the Acne Studios Mini Musubi Bag, my second designer bag purchase. I bought my first ever designer bag in 2015 and it was the Givenchy Pandora cross body in black. I am not really someone who buys designer things to sit in dust bags in a cardboard to re-sell at a later date. I want them to be used, I want them to age with me. That Givenchy bag has seen some shit. It has travelled through Europe and japan with me and still is my go-to daily bag. Then there was the Musubi. I think it first caught my eye over 6 months ago because I have been looking for a go-to brown/tan bag. There were some other bags that I looked at in the meantime but either the style didn’t come in a tan or I was concerned it was too much of an ‘it bag’ for me to consider for the long term. So why do I like the Musubi? Even though this is the Mini/Small version, it’s surprisingly roomy. However I wouldn’t like to pack it to the brim so that the shape still pinches at the top. The branding on the exterior is minimal including only a blind deboss of the logo, whereas there are some special branding details on the inside including a logo stamp and a branded tag for the zip. It is a super clean designer while the knots on each side adds interest. It also comes with a longer strap so that you can wear it cross body.

Beauty Stand Outs

Had a few new beauty bits arrive this month so I wanted to mention a couple of stand outs. The first one is for the cream beauty lover - The Mecca Cosmetica Duo. It is only $42 and includes both a cream cheek/lip colour and their raved about illuminating balm. I have been using it non-stop. The second is for those who love a gel moisturiser like the Clinique Moisture Surge Gel or even the Water Cream by Tacha. The next of its kind is the Glow Recipe Watermelon Juice Cleanser. Its consistency is a lightweight gel which soaks into the skin really nicely. Might not be your winter favourite but as it warms up I think I will be reaching for it a lot more.

For the month ahead..

Not to sound like a typical Leo but august is my birthday month so I am feeling pretty amped hah. I am scheduling light for mid August so that I can take a couple of days off and head to the beach for a long weekend. I haven’t taken any time off since Christmas so I am looking forward to that. I also am trying out a new ‘budgeting to spend’ method. Instead of just buying things week to week, I am aiming to not buy any ‘want’ items week to week and pool all of my left over ‘spending' money’ at the end of the month. That way I will have a larger sum of money and can look at my ‘want’ list and spend accordingly. I am just about to pool my money from July so I will let you know how it goes.

Is anyone else’s birthday this month?!

With Love, Jasmine

Most freelancers in the creative field would say that finance is where they feel most uncomfortable however it is unavoidable and essential to your business running. So I thought today I would share some tips or practices I have learnt over the years in the hope of opening up the discussion and hopefully helping some of you.

With that being said, I am not an accountant or a financial advisor. This blog post include all things I have learnt and is general in nature without taking into consideration your business or circumstances. I would highly recommend you speak to a professional when starting your own business, they are invaluable.

Separate your business & personal finances from day one.

This would be my 1st piece of advice for anyone with their own business/side hustle etc. Open a new bank account and get a new card straight away, have your business expenses come out of that account and have your invoices paid into that account. Firstly, this makes it just a whole lot easier when it comes to tax returns, bas statements to have these separated so you aren’t filing through the accounts working out what is ‘business’ and what is ‘personal’ Secondly, all that money is not your money and the more you set up boundaries that show that the better. You will most likely have to pay a bunch of tax, not only personal income tax but also GST and you will feel a lot less shitty about that if it isn’t coming out of money that you see as already being yours. If you want to be extra organised, you can transfer your calculated income tax & GST into another bank account all together.

When you can, take deposits for work

As a freelancer, I think one of the areas we really lack in worker rights is in payment and timely payment. I would highly recommend any freelancer take a deposit up front, and clearly state your payment terms prior to commencing work. It isn’t always possible but getting a deposit means a) you work out how serious the client is and it can lock them into timelines and b) it may mean you are able to have a more steady income because you won’t have to wait until the client signs off for you to get one lump sum.

Finances can be daunting, but ignorance is not bliss.

Honestly, keeping track of your finances and at least knowing what is coming and going is so empowering. Find a way that works for you. If you can create a simple Excel spreadsheet, or you need something like XERO or even you need a personal accountant monthly. Find something that works for you and means that you are able to understand the basics. I don’t feel the most stressed when my clients don’t pay invoices on time, I feel the most stressed when I don’t know what money I have made or not made this month. The not knowing for me is where my fear lies so I know it is important for me to keep a close eye on things so that I can sleep at night.

Your invoices aren’t your income, yet…

I think it is easy to get your paid invoices and your income mixed up. You get paid, that is your income right? Nope. You work out your pay from your invoices. Your income is actually your invoices minus your expenses minus your GST & minus your Income Tax (you can calculate that here). If you want to be a good behaved freelancer you could also be taking out 9.5% for your super & extra for university loans. I would suggest that only after you have worked out how much you get paid from the invoices each month that you actually pay yourself. Paying yourself prior to working this out can be dangerous and mix up your finances.

Paying tax can feel shitty, but it isn’t your money.

I don’t think I have met a single person who loves paying tax. As a self employed person it cuts a little deeper instead of it coming out little by little it always feels like big chunks at the end of the quarter or worse, the end of the financial year. However, I really do think changing your behaviour with handling your own tax makes it an easier pill to swallow. By separating your business and personal finances and only paying yourself into your personal account AFTER your taxes have been calculated, you don’t feel the hit as hard. Where as if you had all of your personal and business money in one account and you paid rent that week and you also had a10k tax bill taken out that may send you into a meltdown. Separating your finances and putting away each month for tax means tax time becomes less of a personal attack on you and more of just another business expense.

I was considering designing an excel template that could help freelancers generally in organising their finances. If this is something you would be interested in, let me know and I can explore it further…